Light Tricks - Vol. 2 (Sequel to Empty Spaces)
by Gemini11
Summary: Prue's daughter, Evie (who I made up after Story Time, that's why she's not in it) is a handful with a confusing power and Melinda is impotant in solving a supernatural problem.


'You are wandering through a forest. Everywhere you look the trees seem to shimmer with silver leaves. Their trunks and branches shine with a golden magick. You can see a blazing violet power swirling on the breeze. You reach out to caress this power, this energy, with your hands, but the violet light moves away from your fingers. Walking on, you see a silvery pond. You kneel at the pond and look upon your reflection. Your face is glowing, and your eyes are sparkling. Here you are at peace, and you are at the center of your own inner strength and your inner power. You turn from the water and see a sphere of blue light hovering beside you. You can't understand what it is saying because it communicates with a combination of musical sounds. Somehow, though, everything is made clear in your mind and you realize it wants you to follow it.'  
  
"PRUE!"  
  
Prue jumped slightly as she was jolted out of her meditation. She sighed and turned off the native music she had quietly playing in the background, and tossed her pillow back onto the bed.  
  
"Prue!" The scream came again.  
  
"I'm in my room, stop yelling!" Prue called down to her sister. She got off the floor, putting the incense burner back on the dresser. Feeling calm and relaxed, she put the incense out.  
  
Piper appeared in the doorway, looking slightly annoyed. "Your daughter is on a rampage."  
  
"What did she do?" Prue asked.  
  
"Well, after Lila tried to calm her down, she decided 'hey, I'll drive my Aunt Piper outside. As she chases me into the street, I'll swing around, come back in the house and lock her out while she looks for me.' It took twenty minutes for Lila to hear me, and unlock the doors." Piper said. Prue noticed her red face, and damp hair. "Prue, it is over one hundred degrees outside."  
  
"I'm sorry, Piper." Prue said sincerely. "I'll talk to her about playing pranks on people."  
  
"Oh, and by the way," Piper started as she backed out the doorway. "I lost her."  
  
Piper disappeared down the hallway, and Prue followed shaking her head. Lila was sitting on the bottom step, breathing deeply.  
  
"What have you been doing?" Piper asked her niece.  
  
"I can't find her." Lila answered, looking up. "I gave up."  
  
"Where was she last?" Prue asked her eight-year-old.  
  
"Running around screaming 'Aunt Piper's gonna burn up, Aunt Piper's gonna burn up.' It took me forever to figure out what she meant."  
  
"Obviously," Piper mumbled.  
  
"Sorry, Aunt Piper," Lila apologized. "She's just a little cryptic. Half the time I can't understand what she's trying to tell me."  
  
"Cryptic?" Piper repeated.  
  
"Yeah, I was watching the history channel again." Lila explained her new big word. "Did you know that back in the—"  
  
"Not now, sweetie." Prue interrupted. "We have to find your sister."  
  
"Yeah, right," Lila laughed.  
  
Prue passed Lila on the stairs and headed for the Parlor. Lila jumped up after Piper to follow. The three entered the Parlor and a little girl with brown hair, and blue eyes jumped out from behind a chair screaming. Piper took a step back, Lila gasped, and Prue frowned.  
  
"What?" The little girl asked, holding her hands up in a questioning manner.  
  
"I told you not to play tricks on Aunt Piper." Prue said. "It's very hot outside."  
  
The little girl ran over, plopped down on Piper's floor, and wrapped her arms around her aunt's leg. "Did her burn?" She asked.  
  
"No, her sweat and dehydrate." Piper answered.  
  
She looked up at Piper and then pouted. "Hold me?"  
  
Piper frowned at her, trying to look aggravated, and Prue glanced at Lila who was rolling her eyes.  
  
"Pwease!" The little girl added in her cute, innocent, little voice.  
  
Piper sighed, bending down to pick her up. "Oh, Evie, what are we going to do with you?"  
  
"Hold me." She answered, laying her head on Piper's shoulder.  
  
Lila looked up at Prue. "She fell for the baby's please."  
  
"I know. I thought she could hold out against the baby's please." Prue said, and then looked at her sister. "Are you that weak?" She asked with mock disgust.  
  
"Oh, like you're any better."  
  
"I don't cave in so easily." Prue argued.  
  
Piper gave Evie a kiss on the forehead and then put her down again. She ran over to her sister and grabbed her hand. "Sissy wanna see my room?"  
  
"I live in the same house, Evie, I've seen your room a zillion times!"  
  
"I wanna see my room!" Evie pouted.  
  
"Eve, you see it every night when you go to bed!" Lila argued.  
  
Evie frowned at Lila, and stuck her tongue out. She turned to Piper and smiled sweetly. "Her wanna see my room?"  
  
"My name isn't 'her'. What do you call me, Evie?" Piper said.  
  
Evie sighed. "Aunt Piper, wanna see my room?"  
  
"Sure, why not?" Piper let Evie grab her by the hand and drag her from the room.  
  
"Piper, Lila and I are going to go up in the attic a look for something." Prue told her as she was taken out of the room. Prue looked over at her eldest daughter and laughed. "Come on."  
  
"What are we gonna look for?" Lila asked, letting her mother drape an arm around her shoulder as they climbed the stairs.  
  
"I don't know." Prue answered. "I was doing one of those guided meditation things that Phoebe used to talk about, and I guess this one was supposed to lead you to lost items in the astral realm. So, anyway…I was led to the attic, course then I ended up in a forest of some sort."  
  
"So, we're looking for something you saw in a dream?" Lila asked.  
  
"No, we're looking for something I was led to in a pathworking meditation." Prue corrected.  
  
"It probably doesn't exist." Lila muttered.  
  
"Hey, little missy, we can both astral project, right?" Lila nodded. "And this item was drawing my astral self. Only difference is that my astral self was in the astral realm this time, not in our realm. If Astral Prue was drawn to it, chances are that I'll find it."  
  
"But you said you never found it in the astral realm."  
  
"Well, that's true. I ended up in a forest, but it's in the attic." Prue said.  
  
They stopped in the upstairs sitting room. It was supposed to have been a guestroom, but Prue had decided it'd be hard to get to the attic with a bed under the attic door. Lila tilted her head sideways, and the door opened, and the ladder slid down.  
  
"Hey!" Prue said, teasingly. "No, powers!"  
  
"Let's go." Lila said, climbing the stairs.  
  
Prue followed her up. Lila gave her mother a hand after she got off the steps. Lila looked around. This definitely wasn't like Piper's attic, but it was still big, and full…very full, mostly of junk, but—  
  
"Lila!" Prue jolted Lila out of her thoughts.  
  
"What?"  
  
"I said come here. It's on this shelf. I just don't know where."  
  
"Or what it is." Lila added.  
  
"Yeah, yeah, yeah."  
  
  
  
  
  
"Wow, Evie, this is beautiful." Piper said, sitting on the bed.  
  
"NO!" Evie screamed.  
  
Piper launched off the bed and looked down at her niece. "What?"  
  
"NO!" She yelled and stomped her foot.  
  
"What?" Piper asked again. "No, what?"  
  
"You can't sit on my bed!"  
  
"Well, fine." Piper said.  
  
"Wanna see what I can do?" Evie asked, back to being sweet and innocent again.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Watch." Evie instructed.  
  
The little girl held out a closed fist. Piper watched, not knowing what was so special. Suddenly, light began pouring out of the gaps between her fingers. Piper's eyes got a bit wider. The light died down, and Piper noticed that Evie was smiling. The light completely disappeared.  
  
"Look now." Evie said, noticing that Piper lost interest with the disappearance of the light.  
  
Piper looked back down at the hand. Evie slowly drew back her fingers to be holding her palm up to her aunt. Piper looked on curiously, but frowned when all she saw was a little girl's palm. Evie noticed Piper's frown and pulled her hand down to look.  
  
"Come out!" She screamed at her palm. Then looked up at her aunt. "They like to hide."  
  
Piper didn't know what to say, so she watched. Slowly a sparkling appeared. It began to solidify. Piper watched as a cube of bluish-white light appeared. Evie frowned and let out a whimper.  
  
"That's not right!" She screamed at the cube.  
  
It seemed to jump at Evie's disappointment. It flattened out into what looked like a puddle of shining water. Piper watched as the puddle of light grew to cover Evie's entire palm. Her eyes got even wider yet, as she watched the light begin to fold itself.  
  
"That's good." Evie said to the light.  
  
"What is it?" Piper asked, finally finding her voice again.  
  
"Dunno yet." Evie said with a shrug. "It makes what it wants."  
  
They both watched the light folding itself until finally a figure began to take shape. Evie started to giggle.  
  
"What is it?" Piper asked, thinking Evie knew now.  
  
"Her watch."  
  
Piper frowned at Evie.  
  
"Piper, watch." The little girl corrected.  
  
Piper looked back and saw the light stalking around her niece's hand. She shook her head when she heard a meowing sound. She looked at Evie, but Evie was just laughing.  
  
"Can you do that when you want?" Piper asked, without taking her eyes off of the cat created with light. It looked like a projection; the kind on the futuristic spaceship shows on television.  
  
"The light does it when I ask." Evie answered, seeming a little confused by the question.  
  
"Anytime?"  
  
"Yep."  
  
"That's amazing, Evie." Piper said, watching the light-cat licking its paw. "Have you shown Prue yet?"  
  
"No, Mommy doesn't see."  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"Mommy doesn't see."  
  
"Prue can't see it?"  
  
Evie shrugged. "Watch this, her!"  
  
"Evie, my name is Piper, not 'her'." Piper said, kneeling in front of Evie.  
  
"Okay, watch this, Piper." Evie tapped the cat of light on the back and it spun around and crawled onto her finger. She held up her finger and then checked to make sure Piper was watching. Satisfied that her aunt was paying attention she continued. The cat slowly began to rise off of her finger into the air.  
  
"How are you doing that?" Piper asked. "I thought you didn't have telekinesis."  
  
"Nope. Just Mommy and Lila."  
  
"How are you making it rise?" Piper asked.  
  
Evie brought her other finger up and tapped the air between the cat and her finger. A thin line of silver light appeared holding the cat to her finger. Evie pulled the string down with her other hand and the cat seemed to leap through the air to rest on Piper's shoulder. Piper was watching, awestruck, when the door flew open, and Prue came in and screamed, 'Piper!' Evie swung around, startled, and the cat disappeared completely.  
  
"Prue!" Piper said, disappointed.  
  
"What?" Prue asked, wondering what was going on.  
  
"Never mind, what?"  
  
"Remember about four years ago Sean and I were having problems and you and Phoebe helped me through it all?"  
  
"Yeah." Piper answered as Lila appeared in the doorway.  
  
"Well, remember how that night we were supposed to have dinner, and then Lila choked on that cookie and I freaked out and—"  
  
"I choked on something?" Lila interrupted.  
  
"Yeah, I was trying to kill you back then." Piper said jokingly. "You were a pain in the—"  
  
"Piper!" Prue said.  
  
"Right." Piper said, glancing at Evie. "Sorry."  
  
"Anyway…" Prue continued. "I told you that I had a surprise for you and Phoebe."  
  
"I forgot about that." Piper confessed. "I don't know how, I had planned on asking you about it."  
  
"Well, that baby-fearing thing was kind of a factor that night. The point is that I found your surprise. I was trying one of those weird meditation quest things that Phoebe loves so much, and I was led to my attic. So, that's why Lila and I went up there. I didn't know what I was supposed to find, but I found this." Prue held out a rectangular, black box.  
  
Piper took it and opened it. Inside the box lay two rings that had inscriptions on the sides. The rings had the words 'The Power of Three' wrapped around the outside of the ring, with a design of interlocked triquetra's underneath the words. On the inside of the rings Prue had the words 'Sisters first and forever. I love you' inscribed.  
  
"Prue, these are…" Piper paused and read the inscription on the inside. "They're beautiful."  
  
"I even had one of my own in there." She held up her right hand, showing off her ring. "Yours is the one in the middle slot."  
  
Piper noticed the first slot was empty. Piper smiled, and took her ring out of the middle slot. She closed the box and handed it to Prue as she slipped the ring onto the middle finger of her right hand.  
  
"Thank you, Prue." Piper said with a hug.  
  
"I want hug!" Evie shouted.  
  
Prue pulled back, and picked up her daughter. Evie threw her arms around her mother's neck and smiled. "Thank you, Prue." She said, imitating Piper.  
  
Piper and Lila both laughed. Prue smiled and set Evie down. Evie didn't know why everyone was laughing, but she decided to join in anyway. Prue started laughing after Evie did.  
  
  
  
  
  
Piper forgot about the light tricks that Evie had shown her, and was downstairs getting ready to leave. She decided, as she grabbed her purse, to try asking Lila if she wanted to come back with her for awhile. She glanced down at her ring, and remembered something else from that night. Something had happened. Things had changed between her child, and her sisters' children. None of them knew what it was.  
  
"Hey, Lila, since it's a Friday, you wanna come back with me for a while?" Piper asked.  
  
Lila shifted her weight to her other foot. "Nah, I got a lot of homework to catch up on. I missed school on Tuesday."  
  
"Oh," Piper said. "Well, sometime when you aren't busy maybe."  
  
"Maybe," Lila offered.  
  
Prue gave Piper an apologetic look. Piper just shrugged and hugged her. "See ya, round."  
  
"Tell Mel I said hey." Prue said, pulling back.  
  
"I will." Piper said. "Bye, squirt." She said to Lila. Lila smiled, and then Evie waved her arms around.  
  
"Me!"  
  
"Yeah, I know." Piper bent down and kissed Evie on the forehead. "Bye, short thang."  
  
Evie giggled, then turned and ran from the room.  
  
Piper waved from the driveway as she got into her Jeep. She pulled into her own driveway minutes later. She didn't want to get out. She had told Melinda she'd try and bring Lila back for awhile. Melinda had shrugged and said whatever, but Piper knew she might want to see her cousin for awhile. She sighed and climbed out of the Jeep.  
  
"I'm home." She called when she opened the door.  
  
She sat her purse down and went into the sitting room. Melinda was watching television. When she heard her mother come into the room she spun around. Her eyes were bright with hope, but when she only saw her mother they dimmed.  
  
"Sorry, baby, Lila had homework."  
  
"Yeah, actually, I think I do too. I'll go check." Melinda set her bowl of chips on the coffee table, and then went upstairs without a second word.  
  
Piper sighed and plopped down on the couch. Leo came in from the kitchen and sat down next to her.  
  
"Hey, how's the little one?" Leo asked.  
  
"Evie is just as mischievous as ever." Piper said, glancing at her new ring.  
  
Leo followed his wife's gaze. "What's that?"  
  
"A ring that Prue got me. She's got one, and she's got one for Phoebe."  
  
"That's neat." Leo said, looking up.  
  
"What now?"  
  
"Don't know." Leo said. "I'll be back in a few minutes." He said and then orbed out.  
  
"Hopefully," Piper added after he was gone.  
  
She sighed again and looked down at her watch. "Dinner…"  
  
She jumped up off the couch and ran to the foot of the stairs. "Melinda! Get your shoes on and let's go!"  
  
Melinda stuck her head out her door. "Where?"  
  
"We're going out to dinner!"  
  
Melinda came down the stairs with her shoes in hand. "What about Dad?"  
  
"He's been called off again." Piper answered.  
  
"Oh." Melinda said as she sat down on the bottom step and pulled her sandals on.  
  
  
  
"Brent! Get in here!" Phoebe screamed.  
  
The eight-year-old came strutting into the room. "What?"  
  
"Why is your sister crying?" Phoebe asked, referring to Alecia who was hugging Phoebe's leg.  
  
"I don't know!" Brent said.  
  
"Brent." Phoebe said in warning.  
  
"Okay, I hit her, but she had it coming!" Brent confessed.  
  
"You hit your sister?" Phoebe asked. "Brent…" She sighed in disappointment and frustration. "You know better than that. She's six years old."  
  
"She broke my favorite airplane model!" Brent shouted.  
  
"It's just a model, sweetie, we can replace that."  
  
"I'm…I'm…sorry." Alecia sobbed from behind her mother.  
  
Brent rolled his eyes, and sighed. "I'm sorry I hit you, Al."  
  
"I tried to fix it!" Alecia whined.  
  
"I know, but they're models, you don't make them fly around the room. They're for looks only." Brent explained.  
  
"Okay." Alecia nodded, wiping her nose.  
  
"There, see? All you had to do was explain that to her. She won't touch any more of your models. Will you, Alecia?"  
  
"Nope…" Alecia said. "I promise."  
  
"Now, I want you two to go play."  
  
"Fine." Brent held out his hand for Alecia to take.  
  
She looked at it a second, and then stuck her small hand into his. He led her off, and Phoebe smiled as she watched them go.  
  
"If you wanna play with airplanes we'll play with my toy planes, not my models." She could hear Brent telling his sister.  
  
Phoebe looked down again as her little girl stood up from the floor where she had been watching the whole scene. She walked over to Phoebe and held her arms out. Phoebe picked her up, setting her on her hip.  
  
"Evie."  
  
"What was that, Hannah?"  
  
"My Evie."  
  
"You want to see Evie?"  
  
Hannah nodded. "My Evie."  
  
"You'll have to ask Aunt Prue." Phoebe said picking up the phone. She called her sister and then told Prue that Hannah wanted to say something. Phoebe held the phone up to the two-year-old. She slapped it away.  
  
"My Evie." She pouted.  
  
"You have to ask Prue for her." Phoebe said, holding out the phone again.  
  
Hannah stuck her ear up to the phone and said, "My Evie." Then slapped the phone away again.  
  
Phoebe laughed. Prue said that Evie wanted to see Hannah too, so she'd bring her over. Phoebe asked Prue to just go ahead and come over for dinner. Prue agreed, and they both hung up the phones.  
  
"My Evie?" Hannah asked.  
  
"She's coming."  
  
"Yay!" Hannah cheered.  
  
  
  
  
  
Leo orbed back to the Manor and called out for his wife and daughter. They weren't there. He walked back into the sitting room where Piper had previously been. There was a note on the coffee table.  
  
'Didn't know how long you'd be,  
  
so I decided to take Melinda out for dinner  
  
to make her feel better.  
  
Be home soon,  
  
Love, Piper'  
  
"I miss out on all the fun." He said and sat down to finish off the chips that Melinda left on the table. He clicked on the television and sat back to relax for awhile.  
  
Leo was flipping through the channels when some blue orbs caught his attention. He paused in his flipping to see who it was. He waited as the man formed.  
  
"Hey, Leo." The man greeted.  
  
"Hey…Troy?"  
  
"Tomas, actually." He laughed.  
  
"I can tell Marcus and Michael apart, but I always screw up with you two."  
  
"Hey, we take the term Identical Twins to the extreme." Tomas laughed.  
  
"What's up?" Leo asked. "Anything wrong?"  
  
"You mean up there?" He pointed up. "Nah, just got some time off. I'm not exactly married with a house to hang out at like you and Marcus."  
  
"You're welcome here anytime." Leo told him.  
  
"Thanks. By the way, where's the wife and the little miss?" Tomas asked, taking a seat.  
  
"Out to dinner." Leo said. "I was called away when they left, so I get chips. Want some?"  
  
  
  
  
  
"So, anyway, I was up in the attic with Lila and they just fell off the shelf." Prue explained.  
  
"Sure, after we yanked everything else off the shelf." Lila snickered.  
  
"Time for the little kids to go play." Prue said.  
  
"Brent, take Lila and Alecia up to your room. You can play that racing game together." Phoebe suggested.  
  
"Sure thing, Mom." Brent jumped off his chair.  
  
Alecia and Lila followed. Evie and Hannah sat there watching their mothers.  
  
"Anyway, I had them made before dinner that night." Prue went on. "Piper took hers this morning, so you're all that's left.  
  
Phoebe smiled as she opened the box and took out her ring. She read the inscriptions and then smiled at Prue. "That's sweet. Thank you, Prue."  
  
"Not a problem."  
  
Alecia ran into the room again, followed by her brother and Lila. "We're bored." She announced.  
  
"Well, we could call Piper and have her bring Melinda over." Phoebe suggested.  
  
"Never mind, we'll find something." Brent said.  
  
"Yeah, we'll find something." Lila agreed and followed her cousins out of the room.  
  
"I wish I knew what happened that night." Phoebe said. "I hate that they won't have anything to do with Melinda."  
  
"I know. It's not like we can force them to play together…we tried that. It didn't quite work." Prue replied.  
  
"Where is Sean at?" Phoebe asked.  
  
"He ran off with Marcus after dinner." Prue answered, looking at all the dirty dishes.  
  
  
  
  
  
"Can we rent some movies and stay up real late with some popcorn tonight?" Melinda asked, as she crawled into the passenger's side of the Jeep after dinner.  
  
"Sure, what movies?" Piper asked.  
  
"Dunno." Melinda answered. "We'll find something when we get there."  
  
Piper nodded, and drove them to the video store. They got there just before it closed, and Piper begged the guy to let them come in.  
  
"Please!" Piper pleaded. "My daughter had a terrible day today and she really wants a good movie to cheer her up."  
  
"Fine, lady. Just make it fast." He said, opening the door.  
  
"Thank you." She turned back to the car and motioned for Melinda to come. "Hurry." She added.  
  
The two ran around all the shelves looking at everything. Melinda picked out one and Piper suggested another. They ended up with just the two. They paid the man and headed home. When they got there they found Leo and Tomas sitting on the couch watching the television.  
  
"Hey, Tomas."  
  
"Ah, if it isn't the little lady herself." Tomas said, dramatically bowing to Piper while kissing her hand.  
  
"Watch it!" She warned. "I'm a married lady." She added in a teasing voice.  
  
"And what a pity that is." He laughed. "I'll just have to wait on your ravishing daughter to grow up." He said. Piper raised an eyebrow.  
  
"In your dreams, Tommy." Melinda said, taking his place on the couch.  
  
"You're not serious, are you?" Piper asked.  
  
Tomas smiled. "Well, Leo, I'm outta here." He turned and intentionally winked at Melinda. "Later, babe." He then orbed out, and Piper turned to Leo.  
  
"He's not serious is he?" Piper asked. "He's like…way older than her."  
  
"And I'm way older than you." Leo laughed, pulling her down in the seat next to him. "Calm down, he was just playing."  
  
"Mom and I got movies. We're gonna stay up real late and eat popcorn and watch 'em."  
  
"That's great, Mel." Leo said. "That a girls only kinda thing or can anyone get in on it?"  
  
Melinda looked at her father for a moment. "What do you think, Mom?"  
  
"I think it's your night so it's up to you."  
  
"Okay, Daddy, you can watch them with us if you want, but me and Mom get the couch." Melinda bargained.  
  
"Deal." Leo agreed, getting off the couch. "I'll get the popcorn started, and bring your blankets back on the way."  
  
"Great, I'll get our pillows." Melinda said, heading upstairs.  
  
They had a whole arrangement when they did this. They had special blankets, special pillows, a special popcorn bowl, and special cups that Melinda always thought were 'fun' cups to drink from, even though they were normal cups. Piper followed Leo into the kitchen and got out the special cups and the special bowl.  
  
"We're having juice this time. Melinda's gone on a real health food bend."  
  
"But we're having popcorn?"  
  
"She excludes popcorn. It doesn't count." Piper explained. "Don't you know these things? Geez." She said jokingly.  
  
Melinda ran downstairs with the pillows and threw them on the couch. She was heading to the kitchen when she heard something in another room. She stopped and listened for a moment, and then heard it again. "What is that?" She asked herself. She turned to follow the sound.  
  
She followed the sound into the solarium. The closer she got she could tell it was a scratching sound. She looked around the room for something and didn't see anything. She glanced at one of the glass doors. She looked through the glass, and then slowly opened the door. She looked around and then looked down, and lying at her feet was a jeweled dagger. She looked around once more and then heard a scream. She jumped and ran away from the door. She ran into her mother and screamed, falling to the ground, covering her head with her arms.  
  
"What is wrong with you?" Piper asked, bending down to help her up.  
  
"There's…something wrong…" Melinda gasped.  
  
"What?" Piper asked, seeing her daughter was a bit shaken.  
  
"I heard someone scream and there was a dagger outside." Melinda pointed back towards the solarium.  
  
"Go find your father." Piper said, pushing her daughter towards the kitchen.  
  
Melinda watched her mother head into the solarium for a moment and then she headed into the kitchen to find Leo.  
  
Piper walked to the open door and looked around. There was no dagger and nothing out of the ordinary. She closed the door and went back into the kitchen.  
  
"What was wrong?" Leo asked.  
  
"There was nothing there." Piper said.  
  
"What?" Melinda shouted. "I saw it! I know I did."  
  
"Well, it was gone when I got there." Piper said. "Let's just go watch out movies."  
  
Melinda hesitated and then nodded, deciding if her mother thought it was safe then it really was safe, and went to prepare their seats.  
  
"What's wrong?" Leo asked.  
  
"I didn't see anything." Piper said. "Do you think she's just seeing things? Or making up something? I don't want to think that she's lying, but maybe she's under stress and she's seeing things."  
  
"I could go ask about things." Leo suggested.  
  
"Could you?" Piper said. "Just don't take too long" Piper gave him a quick kiss before leaving the room as he orbed out.  
  
"Where's Daddy?" Melinda asked when Piper sat down next to her.  
  
"He had to go check on something. He said to go ahead and start the movie." Piper said. "He'll be back soon."  
  
"Alright." Melinda clicked on the television again.  
  
Piper pulled the blankets up around them as they snuggled into their movie positions, which consisted of Melinda leaning against Piper, with Piper's arms wrapped around her.  
  
"The popcorn will be done in a minute." Piper told Melinda.  
  
They watched the previews at the beginning and then heard the timer on the microwave. Melinda jumped up to get the popcorn, and Piper followed to pour the juice into their 'special' cups.  
  
They hurried back with their cups and the popcorn, and once again settled into their movie positions. Melinda laid the popcorn bowl on her stomach, so they could get to it easier than if it were on the coffee table. Piper wrapped one arm around Melinda. To Melinda it was normal, but Piper was being protective in case something really was wrong.  
  
  
  
  
  
"Lila, time to go." Prue called out, balancing a sleepy Evie on her hip.  
  
Lila came bouncing down the stairs with her cousins. Alecia was pouting.  
  
"Can I stay the night?" Lila asked.  
  
"I thought you had a lot of homework." Prue questioned.  
  
"Not really as much as I thought." Lila said. "Plus, I can do it when I get home tomorrow."  
  
"Please, Aunt Prue." Brent begged. He really loved being able to stay up late playing with his cousin on weekends, even if she was a girl.  
  
Prue sighed. She knew Lila didn't have any homework. She had only told Piper that so she wouldn't have to go home with her. "Fine, you can stay here tonight, if you go to Piper's house tomorrow for two hours while I take Evie to see the doctor for her check-up."  
  
"Why can't I just stay here?" Lila asked. "Why do I have to go to Aunt Piper's?"  
  
"Why not?" Prue asked in return. "You like Piper don't you?"  
  
"Yeah, a lot."  
  
"Then there's no problem." Prue said. "It's either this agreement or nothing."  
  
"It is okay with you?" Lila asked her aunt.  
  
"We'd love to have you stay." Phoebe said.  
  
"Fine, Mom, I'll go to Aunt Piper's tomorrow." Lila said with a sigh. "But only for a couple of hours, right?"  
  
"Just a couple, I swear."  
  
"Fine." Lila agreed, and Prue leaned over to kiss her goodnight.  
  
"Night then." Prue said. "Be up and ready to leave at noon. Evie's appointment is at two, so I have to drop you off at Piper's at twelve thirty."  
  
"I will." Lila said. "Love ya." She said as she and Brent ran off in the other room.  
  
"Love you too!" She called out.  
  
"They left me again." Alecia pouted. "Bye." She waved at Prue, and then went to find the others.  
  
"Bye, Pheebs." Prue said.  
  
"Later." Phoebe waved, and turned to go put Hannah to bed.  
  
  
  
  
  
Piper was nearly asleep when Leo came back. Melinda was hugging Piper's arm in her sleep. Leo bent over the couch and kissed Piper.  
  
"What'd they say?" Piper asked. "You were gone longer than I like."  
  
"Sorry about that." Leo apologized. "There's nothing to worry about."  
  
"Why were you gone so long?"  
  
"Another charge of mine was attacked by a warlock. She managed to vanquish it." Leo explained.  
  
"That's great, so why do you look so worried?" Piper asked.  
  
"Because she was attacked with a dagger. The exact same dagger that Melinda described to me when you were checking things out."  
  
"What's that mean?"  
  
"I don't know, and neither do They." Leo answered as he sat down in the chair next to the couch.  
  
"Is she in any kind of danger?" Piper asked, looking down at Melinda.  
  
"No, not that we can think of. The warlock was vanquished, so he's nothing to worry about." Leo said.  
  
"Okay." Piper muttered. She brushed a lock of hair off Melinda's face and sighed. "What is it, Leo?" She looked up at his confused face. "What happened that night? What changed everything?"  
  
"I don't know, sweetie. I wish I did. I wish I could make it all better for her, but I can't." Leo said, looking down at the sleeping child in his wife's embrace.  
  
"I guess we should get her up to her room." Piper said.  
  
"No," Leo said, as Piper was about to shake Melinda awake. "She's still small enough for me to carry upstairs." He bent over and scooped the nine-year-old out of Piper's arms. Piper kicked off the blanket, and got up to follow.  
  
  
  
  
  
"Brent, Lila, Alecia! Time for you all to wake up." Phoebe called out at eight in the morning the next day.  
  
"Mom!" Brent shouted angrily. "Sleeping here!"  
  
"I know, and I said get up." Phoebe said, throwing a pillow at him.  
  
Brent, Lila, and Alecia had slept on a pallet in the living room floor in front of the television. Alecia rolled over and looked up at her mother.  
  
"Can I go to Aunt Piper's house today too?" She asked.  
  
Phoebe knew that Prue was trying to get Lila and Melinda to play together, and she also knew that if she let Alecia go that Lila would ignore Melinda and play with her only.  
  
"No, sweetie, I'm taking you, Brent, and Hannah out for the day." Phoebe decided. "You can go see Aunt Piper tomorrow though."  
  
"Okay." Alecia agreed.  
  
Phoebe left to go get breakfast started, and Brent rolled over to face his little sister.  
  
"Why do you wanna go over there?"  
  
"Cause I wanna see Aunt Piper." Alecia answered.  
  
"Melinda will be there." Brent said. "You know she doesn't like people."  
  
"So? She'll like me!"  
  
"No, she won't." Lila piped up. "She'll ignore you, and steal your lunch."  
  
"Why?" Alecia asked. "If she's that hungry I'd share with her."  
  
"She'll let you be eaten by monsters." Brent explained.  
  
"You can't be in the same room with her cause she's a monster magnet." Lila added.  
  
"I don't believe you!" Alecia whined.  
  
"Fine." Brent said. "You just see tomorrow."  
  
"I will!" Alecia said and stalked out of the room.  
  
  
  
  
  
Melinda hopped down the stairs to the kitchen. She grabbed the cereal off the counter, and the milk out of the fridge. Sitting down to the table with a bowl and spoon, she fixed her breakfast, and started eating.  
  
"Melinda?" Piper called.  
  
"Kitchen." Melinda answered, and continued to eat her cereal.  
  
Piper made her way into the kitchen and sat down opposite from her daughter.  
  
"Prue has to take Evie to the doctor, so she's leaving Lila with us for a couple of hours."  
  
"That's nice." Melinda replied between mouthfuls.  
  
"That's all?" Piper asked. "It's just nice?"  
  
"Great!" Melinda said sarcastically, and then got up and left the kitchen, leaving her cereal half eaten.  
  
Piper sighed and got up, heading into the sitting room. She was about to sink into a chair when the phone rang. Instead of sitting down she ran to the phone and answered it.  
  
"Piper, I have to bring Lila over a little earlier than I thought I would have to. The doctor had to move Evie's appointment up." Prue said on the other line.  
  
"That's fine, Prue." Piper said with no enthusiasm.  
  
"What's wrong, sweetie?" Prue asked, noticing Piper less than cheerful tone.  
  
"Melinda," Piper answered. "You just know how things are."  
  
"Yeah, well don't worry, Piper. Sooner or later things will change."  
  
"I hope it's sooner rather than later or it may be too late." Piper paused, and then said, "Well, you can bring her whenever. I'm not doing anything today."  
  
"Okay, I gotta go though." Prue said. "Bye."  
  
"See ya." Piper replied as she hung up.  
  
Her hand lingered on the receiver as she looked at the stairs. She went up to Melinda's room and knocked on the door.  
  
"Can I come in?"  
  
"Sure." Melinda called from her bed.  
  
Piper opened the door. "Whatcha doing?"  
  
"Nothing." Melinda answered. "Watching some TV."  
  
Piper sat down on the edge of her daughter's bed. "You don't care that Lila is coming over, right?"  
  
"No, that's fine." She replied without tearing her eyes from the screen.  
  
Piper snatched up the remote and turned off the television. "Are you sure?"  
  
"I don't care if she comes over, Mom." Melinda said. "Remote?"  
  
"Fine." Piper sighed, handing over the remote control. She got up and headed for the door, but Melinda's voice made her stop.  
  
"If it will make you happy I'll try to be what they want me to be."  
  
Piper slowly turned around and made her way back to the bed. "Mel, I don't want you to change for them, or for anyone. If someone can't accept you for who you are, well, then that's their problem."  
  
"I don't know what else to do then." Melinda said, sounding frustrated.  
  
"I don't understand it either, Lila and Brent used to love to play with you. You were all at each other's houses all the time." Piper reminded her. "What happened back then?"  
  
"I don't know." Melinda gave the same answer she always gave, turning her attention back to the television.  
  
Piper sighed and got up again, heading downstairs.  
  
  
  
  
  
"Do I have to go?" Lila asked in the car on the way to Piper's.  
  
"Well, you can't stay with Phoebe cause they're going out, and you can't come with me." Prue told her.  
  
"Why can't I go with you?"  
  
"Last time you went with me you wouldn't stop asking when we were leaving, or how much longer we'd be there." Prue reminded her. "Besides, you'll have more fun at Piper's house."  
  
"With who?" Lila asked. "Melinda?" Lila said in mock seriousness.  
  
"Yes, with your cousin." Prue said sternly. "What is your problem with her? Both you and Brent have the same problem."  
  
"I don't know." Lila said, giving the same answer she always gave.  
  
"Yes, you do." Prue pulled over and turned to look at her daughter. "You and Brent both started acting strange, and neither one of you will have anything to do with Melinda. I want to know why."  
  
"Mom, you're going to miss the appointment."  
  
"I don't care. You're going to answer me or we're going to sit here all day."  
  
"I can't remember." Lila muttered. "Can we just go?"  
  
Prue sighed in defeat. She didn't really want to be late for the appointment. She pulled back onto the road. "Lila, Melinda is a good person, and I really want you to be friends with her."  
  
"I know." Was the meek reply.  
  
The rest of the ride drew on in silence until they pulled into the driveway. Prue and Lila walked up to the doorway, Evie tottering behind her mother. Prue knocked on the door, not wanting to just barge in like normal.  
  
Melinda opened the door and smiled up at Prue, but the smile disappeared when she looked over at Lila. She cast her eyes down to her feet and spoke quietly.  
  
"Mom is in the attic." She told Prue.  
  
"Will you watch Evie?" Prue asked.  
  
Melinda nodded, and Prue set Evie into her cousin's arms.  
  
"Lila and I are going to go see Piper before I leave." Prue told Melinda.  
  
"Okay." Melinda muttered.  
  
Prue and Lila headed up the stairs. Melinda kicked the front door shut and bounced Evie up on her hip. She carried her cousin into the sitting room and sat her down on the couch. Melinda, herself, took a seat next to her.  
  
Evie tugged on Melinda's shirt. "Melonndee?"  
  
"Melinda." She corrected.  
  
"Melon?"  
  
"Just Mel." Melinda decided.  
  
"Mel." Evie laughed. "Watch!"  
  
Evie held her palm out, and Melinda just glanced at it.  
  
"No!" Evie whined. "Mel, watch!" She ordered loudly.  
  
"Okay, I'm sorry." Melinda said, watching.  
  
Evie looked up at Melinda sadly, and then held out her palm again. Melinda watched as a cube of bluish-white light appeared. Evie tapped it and it started to flatten out. When it was completely flat, Evie spoke to it.  
  
"Make something for Mel." She told it.  
  
Evie then took up Melinda's hand and set her hand on her cousin's open palm. Melinda watched the little hand in hers, glancing up at her cousin every now and then. The light shot down through Melinda's hand. She tried to pull away, but Evie held her hand still and smiled up at her.  
  
"S'okay."  
  
The light jumped back into Evie's palm and flattened out once more. Evie gave Melinda her hand back. They watched as the light began to fold up. It formed a rounded base with something coming out of the center. In a couple of minutes Melinda realized that the light was forming a fountain, with water spraying out. Evie was giggling, and Melinda was watching, awestruck.  
  
"Colors?" Evie asked.  
  
Melinda just nodded, and Evie repeated the word as a command to the fountain of light. Soon the water spewing out of the base began to turn purple, pink, green, and orange. Melinda gasped.  
  
"It's beautiful." She told Evie.  
  
"You can have it." Evie said.  
  
"How?" Melinda asked quickly.  
  
Evie picked up Melinda's hand again.  
  
"Go to Mel." Evie said.  
  
The fountain disappeared completely, and Melinda frowned.  
  
"It's okay, it's not gone." Evie reassured her. "We wait."  
  
In seconds the fountain reappeared in Melinda's palm. Melinda smiled at it and watched the brilliant lights and colors as the water of light sprayed higher and higher.  
  
"Will it disappear when you leave?" Melinda asked.  
  
"Don't think so." Evie said. "Me never give light away before."  
  
"Thank you." Melinda whispered and watching the fountain some more.  
  
Evie touched Melinda's cheek and, in a whisper, asked, "Why you cry?"  
  
"This is the best gift I ever got." Melinda explained. "I'm happy."  
  
Evie touched the tears on Melinda's cheek, and Melinda could see the blue tear drops of light jump off her cheek and mix with the light in the fountain.  
  
Melinda picked up Evie and hurried up the stairs to her room. She set Evie down on the bed and set the fountain on the shelf in the corner of the room. Evie crawled off the bed and walked to the fountain. She set her first two fingers of her right hand on the fountain and whispered something that Melinda couldn't make out.  
  
"When you sad it make you happy." Evie explained.  
  
"I'm sure it will." Melinda said, picking up her cousin.  
  
Evie wrapped her arms around Melinda and gave her a tight hug. She kissed Melinda's on the tip of the nose, and then demanded to be set down. Melinda sat her down just as Prue peeked her head around the corner.  
  
"Lila is downstairs." She informed them.  
  
"Alright," Melinda replied softly.  
  
"You all right?" Prue asked. "Have you been crying?"  
  
"No, I'm fine, Aunt Prue." Melinda said, winking at Evie.  
  
Prue bent down at picked Evie up. "Well, if you're sure."  
  
"I'm fine." Melinda repeated.  
  
"Come here."  
  
Melinda walked to Prue's side. Prue bent over and gave Melinda a hug with her one free arm, and then kissed her cheek.  
  
"You need to come stay with me sometime." Prue told her.  
  
"Sometime." Melinda agreed.  
  
"Love you, sugar baby."  
  
"Love you too, Aunt Prue." Melinda said. "Now, go. You're gonna be late."  
  
"Okay, I'm out of here." Prue said, waving as she walked downstairs.  
  
  
  
  
  
"Lila, please!" Piper begged. "I don't mean to be rude, but you've been hanging over my shoulder for the past hour. I can't cook lunch if I keep bumping into you when I turn around for something."  
  
"Sorry."  
  
"Just go into the other room for awhile and watch television with Mel." Piper suggested, ushering her niece out of the room.  
  
Lila trudged into the sitting room and plopped down on the couch next to Melinda.  
  
"What are you watching?" Lila asked.  
  
Melinda shrugged.  
  
"Well, change it. This is stupid."  
  
"Okay." Melinda said, handing the remote to Lila, who started flipping through channels as Melinda got up.  
  
"Where are you going?" Lila asked.  
  
"To my room."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"To read."  
  
"Fine." Lila huffed.  
  
Melinda sighed and skipped up the stairs to her room. She plopped down on the bed and pulled her book off the nightstand. She opened the book and started reading. A few moments after she opened the book she heard a scratching sound. She slowly closed her book, set it back on the nightstand, and looked around. She walked towards the window and heard the scratching get louder. She took a deep breath and yanked back the curtains. What she saw was a woman hanging from a rope around her neck, staring into her eyes. Her lips were blue and her face was purple and black from a previous beating.  
  
Melinda screamed as loud as she could and tripped over her own feet in a hurry to back away, falling on her rear end. She quickly got up and ran out into the hall, slipping and falling as she went. She caught herself with her hands and shoved herself forward towards the stairs. She ran down the stairs and tripped at the bottom. Lila caught her as her mother came running into the room.  
  
Melinda had tears streaming down her face, and she couldn't calm down enough to talk. She was visibly shaken. She shoved herself out of her cousin's arms and into her mother's, hiding her face against Piper's shoulder.  
  
"Melinda, what's wrong?" Piper asked, getting worried.  
  
Melinda pulled back and looked up at Piper. "I—can't—" Melinda paused to take a shallow breath.  
  
"Can't what?" Piper asked.  
  
"Breath—" Melinda choked.  
  
"Well, calm down…" Piper said, rubbing her back. "Calm down, and inhale."  
  
Melinda made a gagging sound and Piper forced Melinda's head down.  
  
"Head between legs…right?" She asked, looking up at Lila.  
  
"It's what I always hear people say to do." Lila said, getting a little scared.  
  
"Okay, head between legs, Mel. Not take deep breaths." Piper said soothingly. "Come on, baby…just calm down. It's okay now."  
  
After a few violent coughs, Melinda got in one deep breath, and then got out a few more racking coughs. Piper continued to rub her back, and finally Melinda began to breathe normally.  
  
"Are you okay?" Lila asked.  
  
Melinda nodded, but then changed her mind and shook her head. "No." She said under her breath, glancing up the stairs.  
  
  
  
  
  
An hour later Prue came back to pick up Lila. She knocked on the door and then let herself in. Prue set Evie on the floor.  
  
"Piper, I'm here." Prue called out to the house.  
  
"Mama?" Evie tugged on Prue's pant leg.  
  
"What, Evie?"  
  
"Something wrong."  
  
"What's wrong, baby?" Prue asked, kneeling next to her daughter.  
  
Evie shrugged. "Basement?"  
  
"Basement?" Prue asked, standing back up. "What about the basement?"  
  
Evie didn't listen to her mother, she just ran off through the kitchen. Prue sighed and chased her. Evie couldn't quite get the doorknob turned.  
  
"Mama?" Evie asked, pointing at the door.  
  
Prue turned the knob and Evie carefully let herself down the steps. Prue followed, wondering where they were going.  
  
"Melon?" Evie called out.  
  
"Why do you think Melinda would be down here?" Prue asked, looking around.  
  
Prue cocked her head as she heard something from upstairs. She turned to Evie and told her to stay put. Prue walked back up the stairs and heard Piper yelling for Melinda. Prue found them coming down from the second floor.  
  
"Prue?" Piper announced.  
  
"Yeah, what's going on?" Prue asked.  
  
"Melinda flipped out." Lila explained with a roll of her eyes.  
  
"What happened?"  
  
"I don't know. She came down stairs screaming, then she wouldn't breath in, and when she finally started breathing normally she said she was okay. We tried to get her to tell us what had happened, and she wouldn't say. Then when we tried to take her up to her room to rest, she freaked out in the hallway and ran off. I don't know where she is." Piper said, looking extremely worried.  
  
"Did you check the basement?" Prue asked.  
  
"That was the first place we looked." Lila answered.  
  
"Evie is down there right now." Prue told them. "The minute we came into the house that's where she ran off to. She said something was wrong, and she led me to the basement."  
  
Prue, Piper, and Lila all turned and ran into the kitchen. When the got halfway down the basement stairs they all paused. Evie was sitting on the floor, talking to the corner. There was a movement and Prue could tell that Melinda was balled up in the corner beneath a load of old blankets, or clothes, or some kind of cloth. They just stood on the staircase a moment watching.  
  
"Was her scary?" Evie asked, quietly.  
  
They saw the bundle move, and Prue assumed Melinda was nodding.  
  
"That's not good. Did her look sad?"  
  
"I don't know." Melinda whispered.  
  
"Want me to go get your fountain?"  
  
Prue and Piper glanced at each other; Melinda didn't have a fountain of anything. They saw the bundle nod again, and Evie got up, as she was passing them on the staircase she stopped.  
  
"Stay here." She told the adults, and her sister. "Melon is scared. Only me talk to her."  
  
Then Evie disappeared through the door. Piper made to go down to Melinda, but Lila stopped her. Prue glanced from her sister to her daughter.  
  
"Aunt Piper, Evie said to stay."  
  
"That's my daughter, though." Piper said, looking across the room to the bundle.  
  
"Evie may only be three years old, but she's special. I don't mean 'Halliwell magic' special. I mean 'completely different' special. She's not like us."  
  
"What are you talking about, Lila?" Prue asked.  
  
"Evie comes into my room at night after I've had a bad dream." Lila explained.  
  
"That's not strange." Piper said.  
  
"Actually, Piper, Lila doesn't make any sounds whatsoever when she has bad dreams." Prue told her. "I can never tell when she's had a nightmare. It's not like when Alecia stays over, or when Melinda used to. I mean, you always knew when those two had nightmares."  
  
"Then how would Evie know?" Piper asked.  
  
"I don't know. But I'll wake up and she'll be sitting at the foot of my bed watching me." Lila said. "Sometimes it can be downright creepy. Or sometimes, I'll just be feeling bad, and she'll come in and ask me what's wrong. Even though I haven't be acting like anything was wrong. She just knows." Lila tried to explain.  
  
"So she has a strange connection with you?" Piper asked.  
  
"No." They all turned to see Evie standing at the top of the stairs. "I have no con…" She paused not being able to pronounce the word. "I just listen to the light. It tells me she needs me."  
  
"I'm sorry?" Piper asked, not understanding.  
  
"It's okay, I forgive you." Evie said, squeezing past them.  
  
"No, she doesn't understand." Prue said.  
  
"Oh," Evie said, frowning. "Well, when we got here, the light from in here came running into the other room and said 'Evie! Melon is in the basement with us.' And that's how I knowed she was in here."  
  
Evie pushed them aside again, holding her palm out in front of her.  
  
"What are you doing?" Lila asked.  
  
Evie paused and looked at her sister, and then held her palm out. "Giving Melon her fountain."  
  
Prue, Piper, and Lila looked at Evie's hand, but saw nothing aside from her hand. Evie could tell they couldn't see it, and she frowned.  
  
"You can't see?"  
  
"No." Prue replied.  
  
"You never see." Evie informed her. "Lila don't see either. Aunt Piper? You seen before."  
  
"Sorry, I don't this time." Piper said.  
  
"Oh well. Melon can see it." Evie walked back over and crouched down by the bundle and held her hand out. "Your mommy is scared." Evie told Melinda.  
  
"I know." Melinda whispered back.  
  
"Want me to tell her something?" Evie asked.  
  
Melinda bent over and whispered into Evie's ear. Evie stood up and walked back over to the staircase. She pointed at the door and started pushing everyone out. When they were all in the kitchen Evie told them to be quiet.  
  
"Melon says that her doesn't want you to feel bad." She said to Piper. "But she wants my mommy to talk to. She's 'fraid you'll think her is crazy."  
  
"I don't care who she talks to as long as they find out what's wrong." Piper told Evie.  
  
"I'll go see what's going on then." Prue said.  
  
Evie took Prue's hand and led her back down into the basement while Lila and Piper sat down at the table in the kitchen.  
  
Prue came into the basement and stopped at the bottom of the stairs. Evie walked over and told Melinda that Prue was ready to talk to her. Melinda reluctantly let Evie pull her out of the bundle.  
  
Prue sat down on the bottom step. Evie pulled Melinda up onto the stair, and then made her sit next to Prue. Evie smiled at them and then went into the kitchen, closing the basement door on the way.  
  
"So, you wanna talk about what happened now?" Prue asked.  
  
"I…don't know." Melinda answered shakily.  
  
Prue slowly put an arm around her niece. "I'll take care of you. So will your mom. Nothing will happen to you."  
  
"I know." Melinda said, and then finally looked up at Prue. "I like Evie." She whispered.  
  
"Good. I think she likes you too." Prue said, smiling.  
  
Melinda held her hands out. "Why can't you see it?"  
  
"See what?"  
  
"It's beautiful, Aunt Prue. She's an amazing girl."  
  
"I know she's amazing, but what can't I see?"  
  
"Put out your hand." Melinda ordered.  
  
Prue did as she was told, and Melinda picked something invisible up and sat it in Prue's hands. Melinda commanded her to close her eyes.  
  
Prue closed her eyes. "I feel something."  
  
"Imagine a fountain of water. It's beautiful." Melinda said, drawing her hands back.  
  
Prue slowly opened her eyes and looked down. At first she saw nothing. Then she saw a slight spark, so she focused on it, and it grew. The light began to twist together to form the fountain that Prue held in her hands. Her eyes grew wide as she watched the brilliant colors shoot out and sprinkle to the base.  
  
"It is beautiful." Prue said.  
  
"Evie made it." Melinda told her aunt. "I watched her."  
  
"But—"  
  
"Aunt Prue, why is there a woman hanging out side my window?"  
  
"What?" Prue asked, startled by this sudden question.  
  
Melinda leaned against Prue for comfort. Prue handed her niece the fountain and put her arms back around Melinda.  
  
"She was just hanging there looking at me…and I heard a scratching sound. I think she was scratching the window. Will you go see if she's there?" Melinda asked.  
  
"Sure." Prue started to get up.  
  
Melinda tugged her back down. "Don't leave me? Can't you do it astrally."  
  
"Alright." Prue sat back down.  
  
Prue astral projected into Melinda's room, and looked around. She walked over to the window and drew back the curtains. There was nothing there. She looked around the room some more before going back to Melinda.  
  
"There was nothing there." She told her.  
  
"I know there was!"  
  
"Okay, well, now there's not." Prue said, calming her down.  
  
Melinda was about to speak, but Piper stuck her head in the door. Both Prue and Melinda turned around and looked at her.  
  
"Prue?" Piper began.  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"We have a problem." Piper told her.  
  
"What?" Prue asked.  
  
"Well, Leo just came from Them. Apparently, another one of his charges thought she had vanquished a warlock and she hadn't really."  
  
"What happened?"  
  
"Prue, why don't you just come up—"  
  
"Piper, she can handle it." Prue said, gesturing towards Melinda. "Just tell me."  
  
"She wasn't exactly killed in the traditional warlock way. She was hung in her living room after he beat her senseless."  
  
Melinda looked away from her mother and into her aunt's eyes. Prue placed a comforting arm around Melinda as she pulled her to her feet. Piper went back into the kitchen, and moments later Prue and Melinda emerged from the basement as well.  
  
  
  
  
  
Melinda sat huddled beneath a blanket on the couch as her parents, and Aunts discussed business. Occasionally they would glance at her sympathetically. Lila, Hannah, and Brent sat on the staircase watching. Alecia sat on a chair not far from Melinda with her eyes attached to her cousin, but whenever Melinda would return that gaze Alecia would quickly look away. Melinda wasn't sure where Evie was.  
  
Melinda peeked at her cousin out of the corner of her eyes, Alecia was still watching her, but this time when Melinda slowly locked eyes with her Alecia didn't turn away. She glanced to the sides of Melinda, and then behind herself, before returning her attention to Melinda. She crawled out of the chair and looked up at her brother and sister on the stairs. They were busy talking amongst themselves and didn't see Alecia crawl onto the couch with Melinda.  
  
Alecia sat at the opposite end and stared at Melinda. Melinda watched her patiently for a moment. Phoebe glanced over at them and smiled at Melinda. Melinda smiled back, but Alecia's constant stare was driving her insane.  
  
"Why are you staring at me?" She asked her younger cousin.  
  
"You don't look like a magnet." Alecia said.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Did you magnet the woman that died?"  
  
"I didn't ask to see her, if that's what you're asking."  
  
"How come you saw her then?" Alecia wondered.  
  
"I don't know." Melinda muttered looking away.  
  
"Do you like pets?" Alecia asked out of the blue.  
  
"No." Melinda muttered, pulling the blanket up.  
  
"Do you like cartoons?"  
  
"Not really."  
  
"What about pizza? Everyone loves pizza."  
  
"I guess."  
  
"What do you wanna be when you grow up?"  
  
"Don't know."  
  
"I think I wanna help people, like a doctor. I like doctors. You think that's stupid?"  
  
"Nope."  
  
"Do you like doctors?"  
  
"I guess."  
  
"They hurt sometimes though, don't they?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"Ever wanted to play soccer?"  
  
"No."  
  
Alecia rested her head on her knees and cocked her head sideways. "You don't like to talk much, huh?"  
  
"Guess not."  
  
"That's too bad. Mommy says talking is how you learn all about people. She said that's how you learn to understand people better."  
  
"That's nice."  
  
"Do you think that's true?"  
  
"Sure, I guess." Melinda said, raising an eyebrow.  
  
"Wanna learn about me? You can ask anything." Alecia said.  
  
Melinda looked at this curious little girl who was being so friendly, and decided not to hurt her feelings by turning her down.  
  
"How old are you?"  
  
"I'm six. I was a little girl when you and Brent used to play with each other."  
  
"You remember that far back?"  
  
"No, my mommy told me." Alecia explained.  
  
"Oh. Well, we don't play together anymore." Melinda said, glancing at the staircase.  
  
"I know." Alecia said. "Brent said that you didn't like people."  
  
"What?"  
  
"He said you wouldn't like me."  
  
"Why not?"  
  
"Cause you don't like people." Alecia said. "That's not true is it?"  
  
"Melinda, come here." Leo said from across the room.  
  
Melinda got up, glancing at Alecia, and went to where all the adults were crowded. Leo held up a picture of a woman and showed Melinda.  
  
"Is this who you saw?"  
  
Melinda nodded and moved closer to Prue. Prue put an arm around her.  
  
"Did you see anything different when you saw her?" Leo asked, kneeling in front of Melinda.  
  
"What do you mean?" Melinda asked.  
  
"Mel, this woman was protecting something important, and with her death whatever it was can fall into the wrong hands." Phoebe explained. "We need to find out what it was and why the bad guys want it so much. Then we have to protect it. I can't get any kind of premonition, and you're the only one that seems to know more than we do."  
  
Melinda took the photo in her hand and ran a finger across it. "This is the woman that was screaming that night, isn't it?" Leo nodded. "She's got to do with that dagger?"  
  
Again Leo nodded. "The warlock that killed her attacked her that night with that dagger you saw. She thought she had gotten rid of him, but he played a trick on her."  
  
"You think I have something to do with this?" Melinda asked.  
  
"We think maybe you're being shown things that we aren't, so that you can help protect whatever she was protecting." Piper told her.  
  
"What do you want me to do?"  
  
"We want you to go upstairs to you room—" Prue paused for a moment and then continued. "We just want you to see if you still see the woman. She's probably gone, I didn't see her, but you might be the only one who can see her, that's why we need you to check."  
  
Melinda took a deep breath. "Will it really help?"  
  
"It might save lives." Phoebe said softly. "We don't know who else this warlock might go after because of this."  
  
"Then I'll go look." Melinda whispered.  
  
She walked over to the table, and gripped something invisible to the others, and set it in her hand. Phoebe and Leo glanced at Piper questioningly.  
  
"I'll explain later." She replied to both.  
  
Melinda walked around her cousins on the stairs and made it to her doorway with no problem. She set her hand on the doorknob and heard that scratching sound. She had to fight the urge to run. The urge grew stronger and she turned away from the door. She glanced at the stairs trying to decide whether on not she could do this.  
  
"It's okay."  
  
Melinda was surprised that she didn't jump at the sound of her cousin's voice. She slowly turned around to face Evie. Evie grabbed Melinda's hand and held it.  
  
"I'll come too. It won't be bad. The light says you're safe."  
  
Melinda looked down at her and suddenly felt calm. Evie opened the door and together they entered Melinda's bedroom. Melinda held the fountain of light closer to herself, and Evie squeezed her hand in reassurance. They walked to the window, and Evie looked up at Melinda.  
  
"Melon?" Evie asked, looking at the curtains.  
  
"Okay, I'm ready." Melinda said.  
  
Evie nodded and yanked the curtains back. Melinda gasped and dropped her fountain, but one of the spouts of water wrapped around her wrist. The fountain hung like a bracelet and dangled there as Melinda stared at the woman in the window. Evie put her other arm around Melinda's waist, and Melinda relaxed, knowing her little cousin wasn't scared.  
  
Melinda noticed the woman was crying and quickly any threat she had felt disappeared and was replaced with sympathy. The woman looked up at Melinda.  
  
"She's sad." Evie said.  
  
Melinda looked down at Evie in shock. "You can see her?"  
  
"The light showed me."  
  
Prue, Piper, and Phoebe were quietly standing at the door and glanced at each other. They looked past Melinda at the window and saw nothing. Leo looked over the sisters' shoulders and couldn't see anything either.  
  
"Talk to her?" Evie suggested.  
  
"What do I say?" Melinda asked.  
  
Evie looked at Melinda like she had to be joking. "Ask her, Melon." Evie ordered.  
  
Melinda looked back at the woman and hesitated. Evie pointed and gave Melinda a little shove. Melinda forced herself to smile at the crying woman.  
  
"Do you want something?" Melinda asked the woman quietly.  
  
Prue, Piper, and Phoebe watched as Melinda whispered something to the window. Melinda held out her hand and smiled a sincere smile. Evie laughed. Melinda whispered some more and then looked down. Evie's laughter died away and was replaced with a sniffle. Melinda let go of Evie's hand and placed her own hand against the window. She muttered something and turned around. She jumped when she saw everyone standing at the doorway.  
  
"What happened?" Prue asked.  
  
"The warlock didn't kill her." Melinda answered, looking down. "She was protecting the secret."  
  
"She hung herself?" Piper said more than asked.  
  
"What secret?" Phoebe asked.  
  
"I can't tell." Melinda whispered.  
  
"We can't protect it if you don't tell us what it is." Phoebe said.  
  
"I can't tell." Melinda whispered again. "She made me promise not to. Not yet, anyway. She said if I tell, something bad will happen."  
  
"What?" Leo asked.  
  
"I can't say."  
  
"Tell us something useful." Prue said.  
  
"She has a request to make." Melinda said.  
  
"What?"  
  
"She wants you to tell her family she's sorry. That she wouldn't have done it if there was any other way." Melinda paused and sniffed. "She's got a little sister, and she wants you to tell her what really happened. She says her sister thinks it's her fault the warlock got her, she doesn't know that her sister hung herself."  
  
"Did she say where her sister was?" Prue asked.  
  
Melinda nodded. "Here." She handed a folded piece of paper over.  
  
Prue opened it, and Phoebe read it over her shoulder.  
  
"What is it?" Piper asked.  
  
"The address." Prue answered. "Mel, did she say anything else?"  
  
"She gave me this." Melinda held out a piece of crystal attached to a rope. "I have to wear it around my neck until it's time for me to tell you the secret. She said not to worry though because with her gone, the warlock thinks he's done his job. She said we're all safe."  
  
Evie walked over to Melinda and slipped her hand into her cousin's. Melinda smiled down at her, and the two of them pushed their way out of the room. Everyone else lingered in the hallway before following the girls downstairs. Melinda was at the doorway buttoning Evie's jacket up and tying her shoes for her.  
  
"Let's go, Mommy." Evie said. "Work is done."  
  
Prue let out a confused sigh and hugged her sisters. "Leo, if anything comes up you let me know." She ordered, hugging her brother-in- law.  
  
"Anything, and you'll hear about it." Leo promised.  
  
Prue called for Lila, and she came bounding down the stairs, Brent and Hannah following. Lila said goodbye to her cousins and then ran to her mother. She paused in front of Melinda.  
  
"I'm glad you're feeling better." She murmured before waving and running out to the car.  
  
Melinda tucked the crystal chunk under her shirt, said her good-byes, and then curled into a ball beneath the blanket on the couch in the other room.  
  
  
  
  
  
In the car on the way home Alecia turned to her brother to tell him all about what had happened when she talked to Melinda.  
  
"Hey, Brent, I told you that Melinda would like me." Alecia said smugly. "She talked with me about lots of things."  
  
"Still doesn't mean she likes you."  
  
"Yeah-huh!" Alecia argued. "She asked me how old I was and everything!"  
  
"See? She's your cousin, she should already know how old you are." Brent replied.  
  
"What are you two going on about?" Phoebe asked.  
  
"Nothing." Brent answered.  
  
"Brent said that Melinda doesn't like me!" Alecia blurted out before Brent could do anything.  
  
"Why would you say that?" Phoebe asked her son.  
  
"Melinda doesn't like anybody."  
  
"She seems to like Evie enough, and she was talking with Alecia earlier." Phoebe mentioned. "And she likes me and Prue, and Marcus and Sean."  
  
"So?"  
  
"So, maybe you just aren't giving her a chance to like you."  
  
"Maybe." Brent agreed, trying to shut her up.  
  
Phoebe sighed and stopped talking. Brent leaned back against the seat, and Alecia decided to watch out the window until they got home. When they got home Alecia helped Hannah out of the car and into the house.  
  
"Brent, are you the reason none of you play with Melinda?" Phoebe asked, referring to all of Melinda's cousins.  
  
"I don't know what you're talking about." Brent said, and ran into the house.  
  
  
  
  
  
Melinda sat on the couch looking at her new necklace. She was dying to tell the secret to her mother because she and Piper never kept anything from each other, but she knew she couldn't tell.  
  
"Melinda, time for bed," Piper called from the kitchen.  
  
"Going," Melinda got up and folded the blanket, and set it on the back of the couch.  
  
She walked up to her room and stopped to glance at the window. She slowly went and peeked behind the curtains. The woman was gone; Melinda sighed in relief. Even though the woman no longer scared her, the thought of her being there all night did freak her out a little. She quickly changed into her pajamas and crawled into bed. Making sure her fountain of light was sitting on the nightstand, she turned out the lamp.  
  
Piper knocked on the door and then pushed it open. She sat down on the edge of Melinda's bed.  
  
"Night, sweetie," Piper said, bending down to kiss Melinda on the forehead.  
  
"Good night, Mom." Melinda said, hugging Piper.  
  
Piper brushed a strand of hair behind Melinda's ear. "You know, you're carrying a burden with that crystal."  
  
"I know." Melinda replied. "But I have to. I promised. I can't let that woman down. She looked so hurt. She left her sister behind for this. I have to take care of it."  
  
"Well, remember that me and my sisters are there for you if you ever need any of us." Piper said softly.  
  
"I didn't mean to hurt you when I asked to see Aunt Prue instead of you."  
  
"I wasn't hurt, baby." Piper smiled. "Prue has helped me a lot too."  
  
"Okay." Melinda nodded and then yawned.  
  
"You get some sleep then." Piper whispered. "Leo will come tell you good night in a few minutes."  
  
Melinda nodded and sank back against her pillow.  
  
  
  
"Mom! Would you just drop it? Please?" Lila begged.  
  
"Lila, why won't you just talk to me about it." Prue asked.  
  
"Look, she's just not like the rest of us." Lila said.  
  
"Neither is Evie, big deal!"  
  
"Evie is my sister though!"  
  
"Evie has no problem with Melinda, and Alecia is trying to get past whatever you and Brent have taught her. Hannah just follows you and Brent. She looks up to the two of you, and you're both teaching her to ignore and exclude her cousin." Prue said calmly.  
  
"I'm going to bed." Lila announced.  
  
"Fine! Do what you want." Prue sighed.  
  
"I love you, Mom." Lila said. "I just can't change everything you want me to."  
  
"I'm not asking—"  
  
"Night." Lila interrupted and disappeared up the stairs.  
  
Prue walked into the living room and saw Evie sitting in a chair. Prue walked over and picked Evie up and sat down, putting Evie in her lap.  
  
"Mommy?"  
  
"What, Evie?"  
  
"The light says not to worry. They will like each other someday."  
  
"I hope so." Prue said.  
  
Evie leaned back into her mother's arms. "Where's Daddy?"  
  
Prue glanced at her watch. "At work."  
  
"Will he be here to tuck me in?"  
  
"He should be coming home right now." Prue told her.  
  
As if on cue Prue heard a car pull up outside.  
  
"Let's get you up to your room. I think Daddy just got home." Prue said, carrying Evie upstairs.  
  
Prue helps Evie put on her nightgown and then sets her on the bed. Evie kicks back the covers and then lies down and lets Prue pull the covers back over her.  
  
"I'm home!" They hear Sean call from downstairs.  
  
Prue leans over and kisses Evie. "Daddy will be right up. Love you."  
  
"I love you, Mommy."  
  
Prue gets up and heads downstairs. Sean smiles and kisses her.  
  
"Evie wants you to tuck her in." Prue informed him.  
  
"Alright." Sean said and headed up to Evie's room.  
  
Prue sat down on the couch.  
  
"Evie?" Sean whispered at the door.  
  
"Daddy!" The three-year-old squealed.  
  
"Hey, teddy bear, aren't you supposed to be sleeping?"  
  
"You have to tuck me in." Evie announced. "I wan a story."  
  
Sean smiled and sat down on the bed next to Evie. "Okay, well, once there was a little princess, and she was the most beautiful woman in all the land…"  
  
  
  
Prue smiled from the doorway and then quietly backed away and made her way to Lila's room. She peeked in and saw her daughter sleeping peacefully or maybe faking sleep. Either way Prue thought she looked perfect, if only their problems would die away as well. Prue sighed and went to her own room. After changing into her pajamas she too crawled into bed. Prue quickly fell asleep.  
  
As she slept she dreamt, and she saw an old woman. The old woman turned towards her, and Prue could see that this old woman was Piper. Two little girls ran in asking for a story, their mother, close behind, telling them to leave Piper alone. Piper tells her that it's fine and she gathers the two in her arms.  
  
Then Prue saw that old woman, her little sister, on a couch, crying. Prue felt heart broken. Then she saw Piper fighting with a young woman. Prue realized that this woman was an older Melinda. Prue was startled; she was so beautiful, even as she stormed out.  
  
Prue saw a park. An older Phoebe was there, and Phoebe's children were there as well, all grown up. Piper was talking with three young women who Prue assumed to be Alecia, Hannah, and Lila. Prue looked around expecting to see Evie. She wasn't there, and Melinda was alone. Prue's heart sank…even after all these years?  
  
She awoke as the bed sank. She looked over to see Sean sliding into bed.  
  
"Sorry, didn't mean to wake you." He apologized.  
  
"It's okay." Prue said softly, moving into his arms.  
  
"Are you okay?" He asked.  
  
"Just a little depressed." Prue whispered. "And tired. Maybe a little sleep will do me good." Prue added, reminding herself that what she had just seen was only a dream.  
  
Sean kissed her and lay back on his own pillow with his wife in his arms. Prue sighed and relaxed. Time would fix everything, or as Evie would say 'The light will fix it.' 


End file.
